Could it be a long Knight ahead for Bears?

10-10 Central faces defending 4A North Sectional champion

EVANSVILLE - Entering tonight's Class 4A North Sectional opener against Castle, Central High School boys' basketball coach Scott Hudson is looking for a near-perfect game. Tipoff is at 7.

Castle, the defending sectional champion, has a 15-4 record. The Bears are 10-10.

"They went pretty far last year (advancing to the regional final)," Hudson said. "We know we'll have our hands full. It's an exciting time, a special time in Indiana."

Not only are the Knights long, tall and deep, they boast one of the best juniors in the state in Blake Simmons, a 6-foot-5 guard-forward who leads the Southern Indiana Athletic Conference with a 21-point scoring average.

"I think the big thing you can say about Blake Simmons is he is a player who can do certain things on the floor and makes other people better around him," Hudson said. "That's one of the greatest compliments you can give a player."

Brienne Miles, a 6-4 senior forward who is being recruited by several small schools, paces Central with a 15.8 average. Hudson likes Miles' consistency and noted the Bears have a balanced attack.

"He's been a person we can depend on and he has the ability to attack the rim," Hudson said.

Although Hudson wouldn't reveal any specifics, it appears Central will use its 2-3 zone, packing it in and forcing Castle to shoot from outside.

"Playing a zone, you generally don't get in a lot of foul trouble," Hudson said. "It allows us to keep our best players on the floor most of the game."

Central could be much better than its .500 record. The Bears have lost sever

al close games, including one-pointers to Reitz and North and a two-point loss to Mater Dei to close the regular season last Tuesday.

"Hopefully, we learned some lessons from the Mater Dei game and learned some lessons along the way," Hudson said.

Castle defeated Central 68-57 on Jan. 17.

n In Class 3A, defending sectional champion Bosse, 18-4 and ranked No. 6, will play Gibson Southern (12-10) at 6 tonight at Boonville. Princeton (9-13) will face Mount Vernon (7-16) in the second game at 7:30.

"You've got to play your best," said Bosse sophomore guard-forward JaQuan Lyle. "You have to play like it's your last game because it can be your last game, just like that."

Louisville coach Rick Pitino was on hand to watch Lyle play against Reitz last Friday.

Bosse coach Shane Burkhart has a wealth of respect for Gibson Southern coach Travis Farmer and his program.